While The Last of Us 2 is not extremely challenging on its regular difficulties, as it allows gamers to focus closely on the storytelling, Grounded is a completely different story. Designed to be incredibly difficult, the mode is harder in a few ways - and one The Last of Us 2 player recently found a subtle way Grounded makes the game harder.
The more obvious ways that Grounded increases difficulty see enemies deal more damage, with many one-shotting Elie and Abby, and resources being extremely limited. Enemy AI is extremely smart, too, as foes will coordinate better and flank players constantly. They can also spot allies like Dina, with infected enemies being impossible to outrun and Clickers being significantly more difficult to stealth kill. Recently, one Redditor spotted a detail that many may have never noticed on their playthroughs, and it shows just how much thought Naughty Dog put into the game’s higher difficulty levels.
Like other The Last of Us 2 details, some fans may have known about this feature, but it was entirely new to Reddit user DEMONITIZEDZ. In the clip, they are seen sneaking through a building, with two enemies lurking around. They get prepared for the fight, realizing their weapon’s magazine needs to be swapped out - though the reload process actually alerts the enemies. They then attack before Ellie is even seen since they expect someone to be there, showing just how realistic the AI in The Last of Us 2 can be on higher difficulties.
Considering that this is only seen on Grounded mode, many may never encounter this mechanic. The fact that Naughty Dog made enemies this much smarter for the game’s higher difficulty levels shows just how passionate the developer is. Enemies hearing reloads forces players to be even more careful than they already were, as any bit of noise could result in death. With the Redditor missing their shot after altering the enemies, they were clearly caught off guard by their foes’ incredible sense of hearing.
In the comments, others were quick to point out different ways that the enemies Ellie and Abby face in the sequel are more threatening in Grounded. CatsCrossed, for example, pointed out how they can hear players opening their backpack and crafting items. They also hear the weapons click when players run out of ammo according to Caldos94. Other comments judged the player for missing the shot, though some praised them for not being afraid to include their failure.
The clip is an excellent example of how polished The Last of Us 2 is. With those that did not spend time with the game’s higher difficulties likely never knowing that this small touch existed, the clip from DEMONITIZEDZ gives fans another thing to appreciate about the award-winning sequel.
The Last of Us 2 is available now on PS4.
